the view from there

As Anne-with-an-e would be quick to tell you, imagination is a priceless possession. It can take you anywhere and allow you to do the impossible. Time travel, space exploration, dangerous missions, thrilling adventures, tragic love stories — things we will most likely never do in real life, we can experience in our minds, and art allows us a vehicle to share those adventures with other people. For centuries that primarily meant books, plays, and paintings, but ever since technology has enabled mankind to create and share moving visual images, we are increasingly bombarded with life as seen through the imagination of others.

Themes that matter most to us will likely be the ones that stir the strongest response when we see them portrayed through someone else’s imagination, especially if we disagree with the interpretation. For example, some of the early attempts to dramatize the life of Christ present an effeminate, carefully coifed, milquetoast dweeb. I love the Vintage 21 parodies, because they take out-dated cinematic interpretations of biblical stories and make them significantly more ridiculous. Though I believe mockery should be used with extreme caution, in this case the videos effectively expose an inaccurate but sadly pervasive view of Christ. They also make me laugh. A lot.

But not all Jesus movies are third rate and absurd. In today’s post at the Master’s Artist, I share something profound I learned from one last week. I hope you’ll stop by and share your thoughts.